Charles hatterslei



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CHARLES HATTERSLEY, OE TRENTON, NEW JERSEY.

Letters Patent No. 103, 4.56, dated May 24, 1876.

IMPROVEMENT IN'. PIANOS.

The Schedule referred to in these Letters PatentA and making part of the same raised from the back of the instrument and held up at anV angle of about forty-five degrees, in order that it may, with the aid of the side-boards or props, hereafter described, act as a sound-board and as a guide to conduct the vibrations of air to the ears of the audience, in the rear of the instrument, without waste or injurious obstruction of sound, while the performer may sit in the usual position in frontof the instrument, and, at the same time, face the audience.

rlhe second part of myinvention relates to the construction and operation of the devices by means'of which the top'ot the instrument may be raised from the rear to the front, or from front to rear, with easeV and convenience.

In the accompanying drawings- Figure l represents a perspective view of a piano with the lid down from the front; p d

Figure 2, a like view of the same from the rear, with the top or lid raised; and

Figure 3, a like view of thesame from the front, the tlap-board and lid being raised to display the devices employed.

In the construction of the iop A B, the division- L line between the ap-board'A and the lid B should,l

be as near the front of the instrument as may be, and, at the same time, leave -room for the keys and space for the performer, the object being to atford thel vibrations of every string of the instrument perfect freedom of motion, except that they are controlled and guided by the lid B and props D D, which are so arranged, as shown in tig. 2, as to conduct and guide them back tothe ears ot' the audience, without marring their effect.

ln iig. 2, the props D are attached to the lid'v B by the hinges i t, and may be folded up against it when the s 'ame is shut down, and the under side of the lid may be made with suitable recesses to receive these props, so th'at they may not come in contact with the strings; or, otherwise, the top may be made a little higher above .the strings than usual, in

order to furnishy room fortheln when simply foldedagainst the lid.

But as I design that my improvements may be ap-v .plied to instruments already in use, I will suggest that, when this is done, the lid may be held up by props similar to D D, but not attached to it at all,

but held in place by simple grooves in it, 'or by pins inserted in its under side, so that the props can be easily removed at pleasure; or, otherwise, a simple straight stick under the outer edge of the lid might be, used, but, in such case, the sound would go out sidewise, and the result of the described use of the lid would not be so good as it would be when thesideboard props were used.

In tig. 2 is shown`one of the hinges-r of the lid, by which it is raised lin the rear, but the top of the instrument may be constructed with the hinges f f, so that it may be raised in the old or usual way.

The rods or pins q q of the hinges r r may be made in such`a manner as to be easily taken out,

Aand may, therefore, ,be exc-hanged from 011e set of hinges to the other, whenever it is desired to change the mode of raising the top from the front to the rear, or-fro1n the rear tothe front.

My improvements are deemed to be especially valuable for making music in large halls and to large audiences, but it is alsovdeemed important to have a simple and easy means of changing'any instrument so 'as to make it suitable for such a use, or for private use in' smaller rooms, and to open in the common way.

Another very important result of my improvements is that, while the instrument opens in its rear to the audience, and the sound is guided and controlled, as before described, directly to the ears of the bearers, the performer faces the audience. This is an important consideration when the performer sings also.

If it should be desired, the top of the instrument -rnight be constructed a little differently.

, I do not claim, broadly, the raising of'the lid ortop of the instrument in the rear, nor merely the hinging the samenear tlle longitudinal center or at the front; 'but What I do claim as new, and'desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. The side-boards or props D D, as shown in fig. 2,-whcther attached to`the lid B by hinges or otherwise or not, as supports for the lid, and as auxiliaries thereto as a sound-board as as a guide in the delivery. of the sound, when used in combination with that lid, and constructed and operated substantially as described.

2. The jaws of the hinges 1' r and ff and the ex changeable pins q q, in combination' with each other,l when used in combination with the top composed of lid B and Hap-board A, as a set of devices for opening the instrument from both front and rear, constructed and arranged substantially as described.

CHARLES HATTERSLEY.

` Vitnesses:

Tnnononn MUNenN, A. M. S'roUT, Jr. 

